College taught me many valuable life lessons, like how to resolve conflicts with roommates or friends, how to navigate life away from home, and how to furnish and split costs with roommates when moving into a new college apartment. It sounds silly, but it’s a really important skill.
I get it. We all want that super aesthetically pleasing dorm or apartment with the cutest decorations. Still, sometimes it’s just not financially realistic — especially if you’re walking into a completely bare apartment (like you walk in and don’t even have a single chair).
With student loan debt being an all-too-familiar topic of conversation among college students, it shouldn’t be surprising that only about 1 in 4 students plan to spend more this year than last year on furnishing their apartments, according to data obtained by Her Campus. Instead, 30% of students plan to spend a little less than they did last year or spend about the same amount.
Overall, the average anticipated overall spending amount among students is $1,231. But how do you decide who’s actually spending their money, and for what?
I spoke with two financial experts — Sarah Gerber and Kimberly Palmer — about what to know before furnishing your college apartment, and here’s what I learned.
So, how do you determine who is buying what?
One of the most shocking things you’ll have to do in college is buying things like your own bed and bedframe, a couch, some chairs, and possibly a table. It really shouldn’t be such a shock, but I’m not kidding when I say I had this weird preconceived notion that houses and apartments just came with furniture (to be clear, I moved three times during my childhood, I don’t know why I thought this).
But how do you decide who is going to buy the couch that you desperately need, and what happens after you buy that couch? The first thing to do is to determine what you think you’ll take in the future and what pieces you strongly prefer, says Sarah Gerber, a certified financial planner.
“Maybe you don’t care too much about both the couch and chairs, so you let your roommate decide and buy them with the understanding that they will be theirs in the future,” Gerber says. “Or maybe you feel the opposite and you want to organize as much as possible. If you both have strong feelings about something, it can make sense to think about how much money you want to spend and also where you’re going to spend your time.”
If you’re still not sure who should be buying what for your college apartment, it might be time to consider the smaller purchases too, because those add up.
“Coordinating with roommates is a great way to share the costs and make sure you’re not wasting money by double purchasing,” says Kimberly Palmer, a personal finance expert at NerdWallet. “Assigning different purchases to each person is a great way to share the costs.”
It’s like saying whoever bought the couch doesn’t have to buy things like cleaning supplies, toilet paper, or paper towels for a certain amount of months. Think about it, things like toilet paper are a necessity, and purchasing it over a year definitely does add up.
“While $1,231 seems a bit high when thinking about just the furniture pieces (because many of them you can buy used from previous students, etc.), it seems much more typical when you add up all the “little” things that you might need — trash can, bathroom toiletry area, organizers, etc.,” Gerber says. “Those are the $20-$40 items that somehow always add up to more than $500 per Target trip.”
Again, those little prices might not seem like much when you’re purchasing, but they do add up. Luckily, there are still multiple ways to save while furnishing your apartment.
For example, shopping around and comparing prices at different local stores or buying items second-hand are all ways to save money while shopping, Palmer suggests. However, it’s a good idea to check the rules on things like electronics or small appliances before purchasing, Palmer added.
“For more expensive items like storage containers, furniture, or allowed appliances, it’s worth looking around for used items from older students passing them down,” Palmer explains. “When it comes to electronics, check for any recalls before buying used or picking up free items.”
Overall, communication is key.
Maybe you and your roommates have certain aesthetic goals for your apartment. Or maybe you have completely different design ideas and you’re trying to find a happy medium. Either way, before making the purchases, it’s important to have a chat about what your plans are for the apartment.
“Getting the best understanding of what your specific dorm room will look like, communicating in advance with any roommates, and knowing what furniture pieces are already provided will help optimize your move-in budget,” Gerber says. “While it’s never a perfect setup, sometimes you can get pretty close.”
Throughout the process, it can also be helpful to go back and forth with your roommates to see if everyone agrees on the colors or designs of certain pieces, like a couch and chairs, to avoid any disgruntlement in the future.
It may seem daunting to have to furnish a whole apartment by yourselves, but with a little teamwork between you and your roommates, anything is possible. It’s as easy as sending a photo of a couch you found on Facebook, as long as you’re both willing to put in the work and find these pieces.